UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
BUREAU OF BIOLOGICAL SURVEY 
WASHINGTON, D. C. 
ADDRESS REPLY TO 
CHIEF, BUREAU OF BIOLOGICAL SURVEY. 
AND REFER TO 
June 26, 1923. 
Dr. Alexander Wetmore, 
Care Bishop Siuseum, 
Honolulu, Hawaii. 
Dear Doctor Wetmore: 
Your letter of June 9, giving an account of the work to date 
and forwarding accounts, etc., has been received. A copy of the 
canary bulletin will be sent to the address you give, and the money 
matters you refer to will be taken up promptly. 
1 hope you may run across either the Laysan teal or an unknown 
representative of it on ifake Island, where you can get a nice series. 
In view of the fact that the birds were about to breed the time you 
were on Laysan and the other adverse conditions, I think you were 
right in limiting the number of specimens you took. 
I wish to repeat that I am greatly pleased at the way you have 
handled the expedition to date and hope that it may be completed 
without any unpleasant episode of any kind. If this is accomplished 
it will undoubtedly be largely through your tact and good judgment. 
As you are probably aware, joint expeditions very commonly end with a 
lot of ill feeling and personal animosities. I shall consider this 
a remarkable case if we can avoid It. At the same time, I do not be¬ 
lieve that we should stand for any uncalled-for imposition of any kind 
but should maintain our rights, while giving others all that is due 
them. 
I will ask Goldman to write you more in detail concerning the 
specimens and the financial arrangements. 
It is fine that you are getting such good success with your 
camera. I look forward with the greatest interest to seeing your 
pictures, and especially those from Johnston and Wake islands. 
In view of the specific requests from the Department of Agri¬ 
culture for you to visit the goat-infested island, I think probably 
it will be best for you to do so. I have written them that you have 
not had experience in controlling animals of this kind, but at the 
same time you can inform them that you have received instructions 
from me to make the trip if they specially desire it. 
It is a great disappointment that it is impossible for you to 
secure the permit to collect birds at this season, as I hoped that 
you might get some very interesting material. 
